Foundation Lodge No 5394 member David Durling was honoured to receive ‘The High Sheriff of Cheshire’s Award’ in recognition of his great and valuable services to the community. The award seeks to recognise and champion the incredible steps taken by those businesses or charities that are creating an environment for their employees to succeed. These businesses or charities will be able to demonstrate their commitment to the health and wellbeing of their workforce.
For almost 25 years, David has been involved with a charity that organises monthly afternoon teas for the elderly who live on their own. His duties are to arrange the hosts who put on the teas and the drivers who drive the elderly as well as to arrange for the guests.
David joined the Charity, originally called Contact the Elderly and now Re-engage, in 2000, initially as a driver with his wife Dorothy, as a host. When the local coordinator decided to stand down in 2007, he was asked to take over and has been the local coordinator for the Macclesfield Group ever since. The charity invites people over the age of 75 who live alone and suffer loneliness. They are referred by medical professionals, family members and friends and take them out for an afternoon tea once a month.
The afternoon tea is provided by a host, who will provide the treat once a year and support them for about two hours, usually on a Sunday afternoon, that day having been identified as the loneliest day of the week. David arranges for drivers to pick them up from their home, take them to the host’s home, and then return them to their home later. The service is completely free and everyone gives of their time on a voluntary basis.
The May tea party for 2024 was held at Eddisbury Hall near Macclesfield, which is the home of Clare Hayward, the High Sheriff of Cheshire. Partway through the afternoon, Clare made an appearance in her regalia and made an announcement that came as a complete shock and surprise to David, that he was the recipient of this prestigious award.
The celebrations continued when David and Dorothy received an invitation from His Majesty the King, to attend a Garden Party at Buckingham Palace. The invitation was also linked to David’s work with the charity and came via the Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire.
David first became a Freemason in 1997 when he joined Foundation Lodge, in the then South Eastern Group now the Trafford Group. He became master of the lodge in 2004 and then in 2008 when he received his first Provincial appointment as Provincial Grand Steward. The following year, he was appointed Provincial Junior Grand Warden with Barry Jameson as his fellow Senior Grand Warden, and then in 2013, they both received grand rank as Past Assistant Grand Director of Ceremonies.
In 2015, David became Vice Chairman of the South Eastern Group and then in 2017, he became chairman. After having been given the honour of becoming the Centenary President of the Cheshire Union of Golf Clubs, he relinquished the group chairmanship but continued with the group team as treasurer.
David first joined the Royal Arch in the Province of East Lancashire with Jubilate Chapter that met in Shaw, near Oldham. The reason being that his brother-in-law, who brought him into Masonry, lived in Shaw and was a companion of that chapter. He became first principal in the chapter in 2008 and later became the DC of the chapter. David joined the Royal Arch in the Province of West Lancashire when he was invited to join Architect Chapter No 1375 in 2009, becoming first principal in 2013. His first Provincial appointment in the Royal Arch was as acting Provincial Grand Standard Bearer in 2015 and was then promoted to Past Provincial Grand Scribe Nehemiah in 2019.
The South Eastern Group has now been renamed the Trafford Group and David has been invited to continue as group treasurer of the new Trafford Group and is looking forward to fulfilling that role. The High Sheriff’s award is a worthy recognition of commitment to charities both in the community and through Masonry.